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Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / HOTELS & RESTAURANTS
May 3, 2013

Stay in Hakone, get a free tour by taxi; family specials at Hyatt Regency; Rihga Royal Golden Week buffets

Stay in Hakone, get a free tour by taxi The Odakyu Hotel Hatsuhana in Hakone Okuyumoto, Kanagawa Prefecture, is celebrating its 20th anniversary and offering a special accommodation plan with a free three-hour sightseeing tour by taxi, through Sept. 30.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 2, 2013

Pianist provides a tribute to Canadian jazz legend for his debut

One decision that faces jazz musicians toward the start of their careers is whether to continue the traditions of what's gone before them or to try and strike out in a new direction.
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 30, 2013

U.S. seeks to expand wiretaps for Web use

A government task force is preparing legislation that would pressure companies such as Facebook and Google to enable law enforcement officials to intercept online communications as they occur, according to current and former U.S. officials familiar with the effort.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Apr 29, 2013

Indian activists push for clean cities

As more Indians travel the world and their country's growing economy and population gain more global attention, they are increasingly embarrassed about one of India's dirtiest features: its cities.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Apr 28, 2013

Pressure grows for the nation's housewives

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's April 19 National Press Club speech about boosting women's participation in the workforce has been covered extensively in the domestic and foreign media since it signals a sea change in the Liberal Democratic Party's view of women's role in society. He said the government...
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Apr 27, 2013

Temple in Gifu seeks elderly disciples

Shogen Junior College, a Buddhist institution in Minokamo, Gifu Prefecture, launched a unique course this month that trains elderly students to become Buddhist priests.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 26, 2013

'Wara no Tate (Shield of Straw)'

Takashi Miike has hit the director career sweet spot, being both feted at major festivals abroad and scoring at the box office at home, often with the same film.
Japan Times
Events / Events In Tokyo
Apr 26, 2013

Japanese photographer points his camera at Cameroon for exhibition

Photographer Michio Hiraiwa has been given the title of goodwill ambassador for Kenyan tourism because of his numerous visits to the country — 150 times since 1972. The 78-year-old has also traveled to neighboring Tanzania 80 times. Hiraiwa's daughter, Masayo, eventually began to join him on his voyages,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Apr 25, 2013

'Leonardo da Vinci: Biblioteca Pinacoteca Ambrosiana'

Leonardo da Vinci is probably best-known for his "Mona Lisa," but as a painter, artist and engineer, he was also one of the most prominent personalities of the Italian Renaissance.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 24, 2013

Boston's terror and the children of the fault lines

Civilizational battles were once waged by warriors who donned garments of different lands. Today it is boys with baseball caps who carry death in their backpacks.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Apr 20, 2013

Gifu opens women-only dorm for drug addicts

A month has passed since drug rehabilitation center Gifu Darc opened the first dormitory in the Tokai region for female addicts.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 20, 2013

AsusTek launches PC that doubles as touchscreen tablet

AsusTek Computer Inc. unveiled a new 18.4-inch computer Friday that can also be used as a gigantic tablet.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Apr 19, 2013

Kyoto's Hamaguchi proving again he is an elite coach

For Honoo Hamaguchi and Dai Oketani, longevity is one part of their success story as the bj-league's longest-tenured coaches. What's more, their quality teams are always competitive year after year.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 19, 2013

'Petaru Dansu (Petal Dance)'

Friends come and go, don't they? Years pass, lives change and people we regularly hung out with or were actually close to become no more than memories or, today, updates on Facebook. But as Hiroshi Ishikawa's "Petaru Dansu (Petal Dance)" shows simply, but rightly and poetically, we may still care more...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 18, 2013

Holes in industrial ecosystems threaten manufacturing

Even in a globalized economy, nations need to have strong local production capabilities in order to bring innovation to the market, American and Japanese scholars said in a recent symposium held in Tokyo.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 18, 2013

Playwright imprint focuses on newer jazz acts

At a time when stories about declining music sales are frequent and major labels aren't investing in new talent, hearing about an indie label like Playwright is music to the ears.
Japan Times
Events / Events In Tokyo
Apr 18, 2013

"Yoshifumi Nakamura: Come on-a My Hut!"

From ornate, Victorian-style mansions to humble wooden cottages, people's preferences for where they live differ greatly. This poses the question: What is a house? Architect artist Yoshifumi Nakamura has come to believe the hut is the perfect house.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 18, 2013

Margaret Thatcher and the 'Big Bang'

Americans have been surprised at the sharply divided views in Britain over the governance of Margaret Thatcher, a product with more appeal in export markets.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Apr 18, 2013

"The Dreams Shown by White Wall: Migishi, Le Corbusier, and Kikuhata"

Physical space has always been an important element to consider when dealing with painting and architecture. So much in fact, that some artists create their work specifically to be displayed at a certain location.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2013

Film sheds light on plight of left-behind parents

Images of left-behind parents, holding up photos of their children, flash across the screen. In the United States, Canada, Europe and even Japan, these parents are waiting to reunite with offspring taken away by their estranged Japanese spouses.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 17, 2013

When the zombies attack, you'll need your gun

The zombie craze sweeping the U.S. is a warning to baby boomers: Our children are worried that the fortifications along the wall might not hold. Let's hope there's time to leave them a different legacy.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 17, 2013

It's the end of everything as we know it (perhaps)

I hope you had it while you could because, last week, sex ended.
Japan Times
BASEBALL / HIT AND RUN
Apr 16, 2013

Taking cues from soccer could help baseball reach goal

Judging by popular opinion, many seem to think convincing MLB to commit to sending its top players to the Olympics is the key to getting the sport back into the program in the future, preferably in time for the 2020 Games.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Apr 14, 2013

Takarazuka: Japan's newest 'traditional' theater turns 100

Ask your average Japanese person or non-native Japanophile to name a “traditional” form of domestic theater and the classics such as kabuki and noh would feature prominently.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Apr 14, 2013

Gun rights lobby pushes weaker bill

As the U.S. Senate prepares to begin debate this week on the biggest gun-control bill in nearly two decades, the gun rights lobby and its Senate allies are working on a series of amendments that have the potential to do the opposite — loosening many of the restrictions that exist in the current law....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Apr 14, 2013

Hobsbawm's last words

FRACTURED TIMES: Culture and Society in the 20th Century, by Eric Hobsbawm. Little, Brown, 2013, 336 pp., £25 (hardcover)
Japan Times
LIFE
Apr 14, 2013

Ancient Roman bones reveal brutal history

In the days of ancient Rome, it was never a good idea to send amateurs to pacify the Germanic tribes. The Emperor Augustus found this out in A.D. 9, when his handpicked crony, Varus, blundered into a series of ambushes in the Teutoburg Forest and lost about 20,000 men in three days.

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami